


Begins At Sunrise

by IBoatedHere



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Beach Day, Communication, M/M, Sharing a Bed, establishing a relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-17 20:28:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29598312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IBoatedHere/pseuds/IBoatedHere
Summary: Carlos doesn’t bat an eye when TK asks him how far it is to the coast.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Comments: 25
Kudos: 176





	Begins At Sunrise

**Author's Note:**

> Instead of having 'the conversation' at the juice bar, the boys go to the beach.

Carlos doesn’t bat an eye when TK asks him how far it is to the coast.

His buddy does, however, when Carlos asks to borrow his truck.

“This must be some guy if you’re willing to drive seven hours round trip on your day off just to see the gulf in the middle of winter,” Andy says as he dangles the truck keys in front of him.

“It’s for a dog,” Carlos tells him as he grabs them and pulls the keys to his Camaro out of his pocket. That was part of the deal. A one for one trade.

Andy whistles. “This must be some dog then.”

“He has cancer,” Carlos says, fighting just a bit dirty and Andy deflates.

“Man, now I’m bummed out.”

Carlos shrugs and holds out the key fob then pulls it back when Andy reaches for it.

“Be careful with her.”

Andy rolls his eyes. “Relax, man. I’m gonna treat your baby right.”

Carlos shakes his head as he pushes the fob into Andy’s hand. “I don’t even want to know what that means, just return it with a full tank of gas and I’ll do the same with your truck.”

Andy grins and swings the fob around his finger by the key ring. “Deal,” he says before his smile drops and he pats Carlos on the shoulder. “I hope the dog, and the dog’s owner, has fun.”

*

TK looks skeptical when he pulls up in front of the 126. Buttercup is sitting at his feet to his left and a duffel bag is on the ground to his right. He also has a backpack slung over his right shoulder.

“That is not the Camaro,” he says as Carlos hops out and rounds the front of the truck.

“I borrowed it from a friend of mine,” Carlos tells him as he reaches down to grab the bag. “I figured this was more dog friendly.”

“Ah, I don’t know,” TK says with a teasing glint in his eyes, “we could’ve fit Buttercup in the backseat.”

“Who says he’d have to sit in the back? Buttercup rides shotgun.”

TK laughs then raises an eyebrow and looks Carlos over. “Well, lucky for Buttercup I am very used to the backseat.”

Carlos feels his face flush with heat and he almost drops the bag as he remembers their first time together, about fifteen minutes after they were properly introduced at the bar. Then he remembers their fourth time together and their sixth, each time better than the last as they got to truly know each other’s bodies.

TK grins as Carlos stutters and stammers and readjusts his grip on the bag.

“Let’s get you loaded up,” he says to Buttercup and TK laughs at being ignored. “We’ve got a drive ahead of us.”

Carlos puts the duffle on the floor in the back while TK lays the backpack across the passenger seat.

Buttercup gets his front two feet into the truck before looking over his shoulder, tail wagging as he asks for a boost.

“All right, hang on,” TK says as he bends over but Carlos gets there first and gently pushes TK out of the way.

“I don’t think the doctors would be very happy if they knew you were lifting a hundred pounds of dog into the backseat of a truck.”

TK heaves a sigh but let’s Carlos boost Buttercup into the back.

“You need help, too,” he asks when he sees that TK hasn’t climbed into the passenger seat.

TK rolls his eyes but he’s smiling as he tells Carlos that he’ll manage but Carlos doesn’t miss the way he winces when he hauls himself up and in.

*

They’ve only been on the road for a half an hour when TK grabs the backpack from between his feet and unzips it.

“I have snacks,” he says as he pulls out a few bags of chips. “Some waters, too. Do you want anything?”

“I’m good for now,” Carlos tells him as he glances over and watches TK tear the top off a bag of chocolate covered pretzels. “No way your dad would approve of those.”

“What he don’t know…” TK says as he pops a pretzel into his mouth.

Carlos watches him chew then holds his hand out. “I changed my mind, let me have one.”

TK knocks his hand back toward the steering wheel. “Hands at ten and two and eyes on the road,” he says before he adds “open up,” and pops a pretzel into Carlos’ mouth.

“Thanks,” Carlos says and TK’s fingers brush the corner of Carlos’ mouth before he drops his hand to his own lap.

“No problem,” he says softly as he takes another for himself.

*

TK spends the next three hours filming Buttercup as he sticks his head out the open back window, lips flapping in the wind, fiddling with the radio, and opening every bag of junk food that he’s brought with him.

Mostly though, he sits quietly with his head resting against the window watching the scenery roll by.

*

They make it to the shore around noon. The parking lot is nearly empty when Carlos pulls in and the air is at least ten degrees cooler with the breeze coming off the water.

Carlos tugs down the sleeves of his sweatshirt past his hands and pulls on his hood, pulling on the strings until it fits tight around his face.

TK and Buttercup are made of stronger stuff, the former kicking off his shoes and socks as soon as they hit the sand and the latter running toward the water as soon as Carlos unclips the leash.

“Are you cold,” TK asks him as they walk down the beach. “I put a blanket in the duffle. I thought we could sit on it but if you need it—.”

“I’m fine,” Carlos tells him as he juts his chin toward the surf where Buttercup is spinning in circles in the water. “Go play with Buttercup. I’ll get everything set up.”

TK wraps his fingers around Carlos’ wrist and squeezes before he leans down and rolls up the hems of his jeans as far as they’ll go.

He heads off for the water where Buttercup playfully charges at him before retreating back into the water while Carlos digs through the bag.

The blanket is on the bottom, beneath two metal dog bowls, a gallon jug of water, a ziploc bag of kibble, three different medication bottles with Buttercup’s name on them, and a mesh bag filled with tennis balls.

He frees one from the bag, calls TK’s name, and throws it to him. TK catches it easily and throws it down the beach. Buttercup scrambles after it, kicking sand up beneath his paws and TK tips his head back and laughs.

Carlos can hear it clearly over the sound of the waves.

*

Buttercup is absolutely in his element at the beach. He spends hours digging and rolling in the sand. He says hello to whoever happens to walk by, charming older couples who are bundled up and walking hand in hand and younger joggers who all stop to say hello.

TK is equally charming, telling everyone and about his diagnosis and how they’re from Austin but he wanted to make sure that Buttercup had a chance to see the ocean even though he’s doing really well with his treatment.

He makes friends with a rambunctious yellow Labrador and TK makes friends with its owner—a young blonde guy who seems to have even more energy than his dog, throwing the tennis ball over and over and talking to TK with big, broad gestures and laughing at whatever TK says.

Carlos watches from the blanket with his knees tucked up against his chest. He’s taking a break, his calves aching from running in the sand, a workout he’s not used to.

He’s not jealous because he’s not sure he has any right to be jealous but when the guy reaches into his back pocket for his phone Carlos holds his breath.

He watches TK’s smile pull tight at the corners of his mouth as he shakes his head and lifts his arm to vaguely point up the beach to where Carlos is sitting.

The guy’s head turns and Carlos instinctively raises his hand to wave and the guy quickly looks away.

The phone slides back into his pocket and he pats his hand against his thigh, calling his dog from where it’s flopped in the sand beside Buttercup, both of them catching their breath.

TK says his goodbyes to both the dog and the owner before they walk off together. TK doesn’t watch them go, he just calls Buttercup to his feet and they make their way up the beach toward Carlos.

Buttercup reaches him first and uses the last of his energy to lick at Carlos’ face before he drops onto the blanket beside him and heaves a sigh.

He’s a sandy mess and when Carlos pets a hand over him his fur feels crunchy with salt.

TK drops to the sand in front of him and rests his forearm across Carlos’ knees. His cheeks are rosy and his hair is wind blown and he smiles as he squints into the setting sun behind Carlos.

“So,” he says, “does your friend need his truck back tonight or…”

*

They take a chance on a restaurant with a patio and instead of pleading their case they’re led straight through to a table in the corner. Carlos wraps Buttercup’s leash around the center post while TK digs through the duffle and pulls out a bowl and the bag of kibble.

“This was surprisingly easy,” TK says, “I was expecting to have to flirt a little.” He winks at Carlos as he pours the kibble into one of the bowls. Buttercup’s tail thumps excitedly against Carlo’s leg.

“You mean like you did with that guy at the beach?” The words are out before Carlos can even try to stop them and TK frowns in confusion before he laughs.

“Oh, that guy? I was just being nice and he read it wrong.” TK balances the dog bowl on his knees as he uncaps the pill bottles and drops the proper dose of each on top of the food. “He seemed pretty bummed when I told him I was with you,” he continues with a shrug and sets the bowl down for Buttercup who immediately pounces on it. “Oh well.”

Before Carlos can ask him what that even means the waitress appears with a pitcher of water and silverware rolled up and wrapped inside of napkins. She quickly abandons everything on the table and loses her mind over Buttercup.

She starts to tear up and hugs all three of them when TK tells her about the cancer and after checking that it’s okay, she brings Buttercup a half dollar sized burger on top of a bed of plain mashed sweet potato as a treat that he gets to eat off the restaurant's dinnerware.

She’s a nice girl and TK tips her well but she seems more concerned with getting a selfie with Buttercup and asking them to please come back soon.

Neither one of them has the heart to tell her that they’re not local.

“I’ll find her on Instagram,” TK says to Carlos on their way out. “I’ll keep her updated.”

*

After a fair amount of Googling they find a hotel that claims to be dog friendly but Carlos still has to tell a white lie about Buttercup’s weight when he checks in.

The guy behind the counter lifts his eyes and looks out the front door where TK is waiting with Buttercup who is very clearly not under fifty pounds.

“You’re lucky it’s the offseason and I’m not in any position to turn away any business,” he says in a monotone voice as he slides two keycards across the desk. “Room 209. Upstairs. In the corner.”

*

The room is dark and a little dingy. It reminds Carlos of the rooms his family used to stay in when he was little, when things were done on the cheap and his sisters would all cram into the twin bed while he would have to sleep on the lumpy roll away--the price he had to pay for being both the only boy and the baby of the family.

“It’s not so bad,” TK says as he steps into the room and flips on the lone lamp that’s on the nightstand between the two full sized beds. It does nothing but illuminate the ugly oranges and browns of the carpet and the way they mirror the colors on the comforters. TK winces and flips the switch again. Thankfully the light dims and TK smiles. “That’s better.”

Buttercup doesn’t seem to care about the clashing colors and jumps up on the bed by the window, claiming it as his own. He spins in a circle once before he lays down and almost immediately starts snoring.

“I guess this one is ours,” Carlos says as he sets the duffle bag and TK’s backpack down on the bed closest to the door. He eyes Buttercup who has stretched out on his side, his head lolling off the end of the bed. “Should we have put a towel or something down first? He’s really sandy.”

TK snorts. “You think a little sand is going to hurt anything? God only knows what kind of stains are on these beds.”

Carlos frowns down at the bed in front of him while TK throws open the curtains.

“At least the view is nice,” TK says and Carlos looks up.

They’re facing the water and when TK cracks open the sliding glass door and steps out onto the small balcony Carlos can hear the waves. Maybe he’ll wake up early and watch the sunrise.

TK locks the door when he comes back in but he leaves the curtains open. He turns the light on in the bathroom, pokes his head in, and hums.

“So there are the basics,” he says as he leans back out of the room and crosses the distance to stand beside Carlos. “Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and a little tube toothpaste and since I figured I’d get pretty gross on the beach—.” He pauses to unzip his backpack and shove his hand inside. When he pulls it out he’s holding a travel sized bar of deodorant. “--I brought this. We can share it in the morning or we can head back out and try to find a pharmacy or something.”

Carlos doesn’t think he has it in him to get back into the truck and from the looks of it Buttercup doesn’t either.

“I’m fine with sharing,” he says. “I think right now I just need a shower.”

TK leans a little closer so his chest brushes against Carlos’ arm. “Do you want company in there?”

Carlos laughs. “Do you think we’ll both fit?”

TK seems to consider it for a moment before he shakes his head and sighs. “Probably not. You go first, and try not to use all the hot water.”

Carlos makes it quick. He uses half of the shampoo and body wash and leaves the rest for TK. He wishes he had clean clothes to change into—the thought of pulling on what he’s been wearing makes him itch—but he doesn’t have much of a choice.

It’s warm enough in the hotel room to forgo the sweatshirt so he redresses in his t-shirt and boxers. He leaves his jeans in a pile on the floor, too tired to care about picking them up.

He brushes his teeth using his finger in place of an actual tooth brush then steps out of the bathroom.

“All yours,” he says and stops short when he sees TK on the bed struggling to get his own sweatshirt over his head. “Hey, easy,” Carlos tells him as he drops his own sweatshirt on the end of the bed and steps in front of TK. “Easy, easy, easy.”

TK grunts in response but lets Carlos ease the fabric over his head.

“I think I maybe overdid it today,” TK grits out, face twisted in pain as he lifts his arms again so Carlos can remove his t-shirt.

“You think,” Carlos asks as he tosses the shirt to the side. There’s no blood seeping through the bandage on TK’s chest so he figures it can’t be all bad. “Do you have any pain meds?”

TK nods. “My backpack. Front pocket.”

Carlos finds the pills and a room temperature bottle of water in the bag. He hands the pill bottle over to TK who shakes the proper dose into his hand while Carlos cracks open the water.

“Thank you,” TK says quietly after he washes down the pills with half the bottle of water. “They should kick in soon. Have you ever gotten shot,” he asks as he stands with a wince. “Good,” he continues when Carlos shakes his head. “Don’t. It sucks.”

“I’ll have to remember that. Do you need anything else?”

“I’m good,” he says as he lays his hand against Carlos’ face. “You look tired.” He leans up and presses their lips together for a chaste kiss. “But you taste good,” TK says when he pulls back with a hum, his eyes soft and fond and Carlos has to take a deep breath to keep the sharp swell of affection that he feels for the man down. “You should lay down, I’ll be right out.” He pats Carlos’ side as he slips past him and heads for the bathroom.

Carlos listens to the water run as he pulls back the comforter with the fabric pinched between his thumb and pointer finger trying to touch it as little as possible, unable to get what TK said about it out of his mind. He drags it down to the foot of the bed then climbs between the sheets. They’re cool and starchy and smell a bit like bleach but at least that means they’re clean.

TK’s elbow or knee must hit the wall of the shower because there’s a dull clunk and before Carlos can say anything TK is yelling back that he’s fine.

He emerges from the bathroom a few minutes later, steam billowing out behind him. He’s rubbing a towel against his hair with one hand and has his other arm crossed over his bare chest so he can cradle his elbow with the other.

“We definitely wouldn't have both fit in there,” TK says as he drops the towel to his side and Carlos gets his first look at the unbandaged stitches.

They’re neat and precise, holding together raised, pink skin and Carlos can’t believe that such a small wound could have left such a gaping hole in his life. He can’t seem to look away, not as TK says his name or when he steps closer to the bed. He knows the stitches will come out soon and eventually the scar will fade but Carlos doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to shake the memory of the bone deep dread he felt when he heard the gun go off inside the house or the way his hands shook as he sat at TK’s bedside, steadying them by curling one around TK’s bicep and the carding the other through his hair.

“Carlos,” TK says again, closer this time and sliding one knee onto the bed. He puts his hand on Carlo’s chest, right over his heart, like he’s the one that needs proof of life. “I’m okay. I’m all right.”

“Are you,” Carlos asks, “does it still hurt? Do you need to cover it? I _can_ find a pharmacy if you need me to, it’s okay, I don’t mind.”

“I’m fine,” TK says and seems to prove it by climbing over Carlos instead of walking around to the other side of the bed. “It can go uncovered for one night and I can already feel the meds working.”

“Are you comfortable, though?” He tries to shift away, to give TK more space, but TK throws one leg over Carlos’ thigh and drapes his arm more fully over Carlos’ chest to lock him in place. “Do you need another pillow? We could take a couple from Buttercup’s bed.”

“I’m okay,” TK answers with a laugh. “You sound like my dad. Next you’ll be forcing me to drink seven bottles of water in a row.”

“Are you thirsty? Do you want--.”

“What I want,” TK interrupts, “is for you to turn off the light and for both of us to get some sleep, okay?”

Carlos nods and reaches behind him. “I can do that,” he says as the room plunges into darkness, the only light coming from the silver glow of the moon as it shines through the balcony while Buttercup’s deep snores are the only sound.

“That’s better,” TK mumbles as he drops his head to Carlos’ shoulder. “Is this okay?”

Carlos nods and then clears his throat. “Yeah,” he answers, “of course.”

Carlos doesn’t know what else to say because they’ve never done this. They’ve rarely made it to a bed and they’ve never fallen asleep together. They don’t cuddle like this. They don’t curl into each other’s warmth. Tomorrow they’ll wake up together--another first--and by the time Carlos drops TK and Buttercup back off at the station they’ll have bypassed the longest amount of time they’ve spent together by a good twenty four hours.

This is _something_. The two of them are _something_ but he has no idea what to call it and he doubts TK would know either. To ask him would be to scare him, to send him running back to Austin and out of his life and Carlos doesn’t want to lose him almost as much as he wants to hold him closer and never let go.

Like TK can read his mind, he snuggles closer, his breath coming out in warm, even puffs against Carlos’ neck as he falls deeper and deeper into sleep.

Carlos lies awake, overly tired and overly stressed, watching the minutes roll by on the digital clock on the table beside the bed.

It’s after midnight when he finally gives up. TK has rolled just enough away for Carlos to extract himself without waking him up.

In the absence of a warm body to hold TK reaches for Carlos’ pillow and drags it against his chest. It’s an acceptable substitute because he burrows his face into the middle of it and quickly settles back to sleep.

Buttercup stirs as Carlos tip-toes past, lifting his head and thumping his tail against the mattress until Carlos scratches behind his ears.

“Go back to sleep,” Carlos whispers and Buttercup rolls over onto his back, stretches his front legs out as far as they’ll go before he relaxes and begins to snore again.

The door to the balcony unlocks with a soft click and he steps out into the night. The breeze coming off the water smells of salt and the metal of the railing is cool against his palms when he leans against it.

It’s not enough to clear his head but it helps, it’s a start, but it’s short lived because TK steps out onto the balcony with him not even ten minutes later.

He’s wearing Carlos’ sweatshirt, roomy in the shoulders and chest and when he raises a hand to rub the sleep from his eyes the too-long sleeves fall down below his wrist.

“I woke up and you were gone,” TK says as he comes to a stop beside Carlos and leans into his side. “Worried me for a second.”

“I’m sorry,” Carlos tells him, “I just needed some air.”

TK shifts to put some space between them. “If I was too clingy you could’ve just pushed me away.”

“You weren’t,” Carlos says as he wraps his arm around TK’s shoulders. “And I would never.”

TK takes the invitation and runs with it as he steps between Carlos and the railing so their bodies are flush.

“I know you wouldn’t,” he says as he slips his hands beneath the fabric of Carlo’s t-shirt. “Did you know my dad is from Santa Monica,” he asks conversationally as his warm fingers spread out across Carlos’ stomach. Carlos shakes his head as he leans his hands on the railing on either side of TK’s hips. “We used to visit my grandparents out there in the summer. Their house was right on the beach. It was like something out of a movie, you know? Like a famous person would live there. These huge windows that looked out over the water. It was amazing. Or sometimes we’d go to Coney Island or Asbury Park for a long weekend if my dad had time off...which he usually didn’t but that was fun, too. But then, when my parents got divorced my mom got a place in The Hamptons. It was part of the custody agreement that I got to spend the summers with her and she’s this big, important corporate lawyer so she got this really nice place with a pool in the backyard. But we’d spend every day on the beach. She’d chase me around and slather me with sunscreen and I’d just into the water and immediately wash it all off.”

Carlos can picture it clearly. Ten year old TK with sunburn on the tops of his shoulders and down the bridge of his nose, his mother yelling at him to stand still for one minute and TK taking off again well before the minute was up.

The soft smile on TK’s face fades as he looks over Carlos’ shoulder to avoid eye contact before he begins again.

“Then I got a little older and hanging out with your mom all summer wasn’t cool so she started working more and I started going to parties…” He trails off and Carlos fills in the gaps. He can imagine TK at fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, losing innocence far too early with alcohol thrumming through his veins and pills in his pockets.

“Some things followed me home in the fall,” TK says, “and then for the rest of my life.”

“Ty--.”

TK shakes his head. “No, it’s fine, that’s not the point of all this, the point is that I’ve spent a lot of time at the beach in my life and I’m pretty sure today is at the very top of the list. I want to thank you for doing all this and being here with me. It means a lot.”

“Why am I here,” Carlos asks and TK looks up at him with a frown but Carlos can’t keep this in any longer. “I mean, what is this? What are we?”

TK drops his hands from beneath Carlos’ shirt. “Do we have to have this conversation right now? It’s late,” he says as he steps around Carlo, “or it’s early. Can’t we just talk about this in the morning?”

Carlos reaches out and catches TK by the elbow. “No, we have to talk about it now because I can’t go back in there and hold you for the rest of the night when I know there’s a chance that you might pretend it never happened in the morning.”

“I can sleep in the other bed.”

“That’s not going to fix anything.”

“I didn’t know there was anything to fix.”

“Yeah, that’s the problem,” Carlos says as TK pulls himself free. He only makes it as far as the cheap patio chair on the left side of the door where he sits down hard enough for the plastic to creak beneath his weight. “I just want to know what’s going on between us,” Carlos tells him, “if there’s even an us. You said you didn’t want this--.” He points between the two of them and TK looks down at his feet. “And that’s fine. If you want to just be friends that’s fine, but if that’s all that we are then I can’t do that,” he says as he points to the hotel room. “I can’t hook up with you one night, watch you leave, and then not hear from you until you decide you want to do it again.”

“Things are crazy right now.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“No,” TK says as he leans forward, elbows on his thighs and his hands loosely clasped together. “I told my dad I wasn’t sure if I wanted to come back. I don’t know if I want to do this anymore.”

Carlos takes a deep breath and leans back against the railing. That’s a lot.

“That’s why you wanted to get away?”

“Yes,” he says quickly before he shakes his head. “No. I wanted to do this for Buttercup. I don’t know the kind of life he had before he came to us, just that he had cancer and he was surrendered to some clinic so he could live in a kennel. I wanted to do something nice for him. But I don’t know. Maybe I just needed some space, too. I watched my dad go off to work knowing that there was a chance that he might not come back and still, all I wanted to do was follow him. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. I never had a back up plan, you know? But now I don’t know if I wanted to do it because I love it or because I’m still trying to make up for lost time with him or impress him or try to prove to him I’m not a screw up.”

“You’re not,” Carlos tells him and TK shrugs.

“Sometimes,” he says vaguely. “I just don’t know what to do with myself right now. This job almost killed me and for what? Is it all worth it? Do I want to go out like this? I don’t know who I am without this job and right now I don’t know who I am with it. I don’t know anything. I don’t know if this is what I want to be doing or if this is even the city or state I want to be doing it in.”

“Well,” Carlos says, “I guess that would settle that.”

“I’m sorry,” TK tells him. His eyes are wide and bright in the moonlight. “But if I don’t know who I am how am I supposed to know what we are?”

“You’re not,” Carlos says simply. Sometimes it’s like that. The simple things are the ones that hurt the most. “I’m just glad we talked so now I know.”

“I feel bad. This isn’t fair to you, not after you’ve been so nice to me.”

“It’s okay, really. I meant it when I said that we could be friends. I’d like that.”

TK smiles but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “You’re too good for me.”

“I don’t think that’s true,” Carlos tells him as he pushes himself off the railing, “but I do think I should try to get some sleep. I have a shift at noon tomorrow.”

“Jesus,” TK says with a shake of his head, “why didn’t we just go back to Austin tonight? Why’d you let us stay?”

“You asked.”

“So you said yes.”

Carlos shrugs. “You looked like you were having fun. You looked happy. I wasn’t going to take that from you.” He leans down and kisses the top of TK’s head, one last more-than-just-friends gesture. “You should get some sleep.”

TK follows him into the room but hangs back while Carlos gets into bed, like he’s not sure if he’s still welcome.

“Come on,” Carlos says as he pats the empty space beside him. “It’s okay. Plus I bet Buttercup hogs the covers.”

TK snorts and settles in next to Carlos, facing him and close, but not nearly as close as before.

“Thank you,” TK says quietly and Carlos rolls over so he’s facing him as well. “For coming all the way out here with me and for being so understanding about my...issues.”

Carlos slides his hand across the mattress and lays his fingers over TK’s wrist. “You’re a good guy,” he tells him, “and you deserve to be happy. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.”

TK’s eyes slip shut as he whispers “me too.”

*

When Carlos wakes up, both TK and Buttercup are gone.

He panics for a moment, his imagination running wild with all the wrong scenarios before he sees his sweatshirt and jeans folded neatly on the end of Buttercup’s bed with a piece of hotel stationary resting on top.

_Went for a walk on the beach_ , the note reads, _come join us._

They’re easy to find. They’re the only ones on the beach, sitting side by side watching the sun come up over the water, painting the sky with pinks and reds.

TK has the hood of his sweatshirt pulled up and his arms are wrapped around his knees. Buttercup is sitting next to him, leaning into his side, panting happily. He’s the first to spot Carlos and he picks himself up and trots down the beach to greet him.

“Hey buddy,” Carlos says as he kneels down in the sand to give Buttercup a few good scritches.

He leads Carlos back to TK who has been watching them with a soft smile on his face.

“Did you sleep well,” TK asks as Carlos sits down next to him. His shoes are off and his toes are dug deep into the sand. The bottoms of his jeans are wet, like he wandered too far into the water on their walk.

Carlos is going to miss him so much.

“Well enough,” Carlos answers. “What about you?”

TK shakes his head. “I couldn’t fall asleep. I just laid there watching you sleep and thinking about how I lied to you. I told you I didn’t know anything and that I wasn’t sure of anything but that’s not true.” He reaches for Carlos’ hand and laces their fingers together. “I know you. I’m sure about you. You’re probably the sweetest guy I’ve even met, really. I’ve never had a boyfriend that would drive all this way just to take a dog—not even their dog—to the beach or sit with me in the hospital even though I was unconscious or take my coworker to a club just because I asked them to. And you did all that after I was a total ass to you after you cooked me that dinner—.”

“That’s water under the bridge, TK.”

“I know,” TK says with a nod. “I know you think that and I know you’re not ever going to hold that against me. That’s another thing that makes you…” He trails off and Carlos squeezes his hand. “It’s just what makes you, you,” TK finishes. “I don’t want to lose that even if I don’t think I deserve it.”

“You do,” Carlos tells him and TK ducks his head.

“I may not know what I want to do professionally right now but I want to try and figure it out with you.” He looks up again and meets Carlos’ eyes. “That is if you still want me.”

Carlos laughs wetly and leans in for a kiss, his heart nearly bursting with happiness when TK meets him halfway. He presses their foreheads together but keeps his eyes open so he can watch the way TK’s smile lights up his face.

“We should head home,” Carlos says softly and TK nods and kisses him again.

“In a little while,” he says as he rests his head on Carlos’ shoulder as Carlos wraps his arm around him. “Let’s stay to watch the sunrise.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm trying to collect Lone Star friends on Tumblr so if you want to, come say [hi.](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/iboatedhere)


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